Welcome to The Helen Mirren Archives, your premiere web resource on the British actress. Best known for her performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, "Prime Suspect" and her Oscar-winning role in "The Queen", Helen Mirren is one of the world's most eminent actors today. This unofficial fansite provides you with all latest news, photos and videos on her past and present projects.  Enjoy your stay.
Celebrating
10 years
on the web
Nov
11
2017

Entertainment Weekly has a bit on Helen Mirren’s interview on Netflix’ The Hollywood Masters. No stranger to portraying real-life figures, Helen Mirren may have her eyes set on her next “Shakespearean character.” “I’d be so funny as Trump. I love it. I’ve almost got the hair. Yes, of course, I mean, what a fascinating character. What an extraordinary character. I mean, that’s a character isn’t it, the real thing? I would say real life is so much more interesting than anything you can make up. But you know, a fantastic sort of slightly Shakespearean character. He may have a Shakespearean fall, I don’t know, but he is an extraordinary character.” When asked if she thought it would be difficult to penetrate Donald Trump’s psychology, the Academy Award winner says her portrayal of the president would start by looking into his background. “I don’t think that would be too difficult to penetrate quite honestly,” she opined. “You look at the upbringing. You look at the schooling, the father, the mother. I don’t know much about Mr.Trump’s background, but if I was to play him, I would definitely start there… That’s what you have to start with, the child, and the child is very much in Trump.” Mirren’s next film, The Leisure Seeker, opens in theaters on Jan. 19.

Oct
15
2017

Helen Mirren will be honored at the 45th Chaplin Award Gala on Monday, April 30, 2018 at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. A beloved figure of stage, screen, and television, Mirren has bestowed upon the world a series of iconic performances in a career spanning more than fifty years. The annual event will be attended by a host of notable guests and presenters and will include movie and interview clips, culminating in the presentation of the Chaplin Award. “It is an honor and a pleasure for us to present Helen Mirren with our 45th Chaplin Award,” said Ann Tenenbaum, the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Board Chairman. “From housemaid to Queen and everything in between, Ms. Mirren has delivered masterful performances of complex characters, upending stereotype after stereotype along the way.” “Ever since her debut in Michael Powell’s Age of Consent in 1969, Helen Mirren has been lighting up screens with one finely crafted performance after another,” said Lesli Klainberg, the Executive Director of the Film Society of Lincoln Center. “From her Oscar-winning role in The Queen to her brilliant work in The Long Good Friday, The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, The Madness of King George, Gosford Park, The Tempest, The Last Station, Red, Hitchcock, Woman in Gold, and Eye in the Sky, she has shown her exquisite range and proven her commitment to excellence and the art of cinema. The Film Society is honored to present the 45th Chaplin Gala Award to Helen Mirren.” The full press release can be read over at the Film Society of Lincoln Center.

Aug
29
2016

It’s quite a year of new ground for Helen Mirren. After her stint on “Fast 8”, what seems to be her first appearance in a horror film, “Wincheser”, and the not-yet-officia appearance in a Disney musical, Mirren is among the line-up of the upcoming Pirelli calendar, which will include the following actresses: Lupita Nyong’o, Jessica Chastain, Uma Thurman, Nicole Kidman, Lea Seydoux, Robin Wright, Zhang Ziyi, Helen Mirren, Rooney Mara, Penelope Cruz, Julianne Moore, Charlotte Rampling, Alicia Vikander, Kate Winslet, and Jessica Chastain, along with Moscow State University professor Anastacia Ignatova. The calendar – which is published by the Italian tire manufacturer’s British subsidiary – is famous for featuring some of the most iconic models and Hollywood stars captured by leading photographers. Peter Lindbergh, who also shot those beautiful pictures for Helen’s L’Oreal campaign, will photograph the 2017 edition.

Jan
14
2016

Sad news today, apart from the Academy Awards nominations. Alan Rickman has died in London after losing a cancer battle at the age of 69. The British actor, known for his role as Professor Snape in the Harry Potter films, died surrounded by friends and relatives. A statement from his family read: “The actor and director Alan Rickman has died from cancer at the age of 69. He was surrounded by family and friends.” Rickman played iconic roles in films including Die Hard, Robin Hood and Love Actually. The star was a long-standing member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and has won a number of awards including a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, an Emmy and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 1998, Rickman and Helen Mirren performed Antony and Cleopatra at the National Theatre. Helen’s upcoming film “Eye in the Sky”, out on March 11, now has the sad distinction of being Alan Rickman’s last project. Entertainment Tonight has released a statement by Helen Mirren on Alan Rickman’s passing:

Alan was a towering person, physically, mentally and as an artist. He was utterly distinctive, with a voice that could suggest honey or a hidden stiletto blade, and the profile of a Roman Emperor. He was also a great friend, generous and social. He will be very missed by many. (Helen Mirren)

Oct
13
2015

Dame Helen Mirren has been named Britain’s most empowering woman, in a poll voted by 2,000 other women. Helen Mirren topped the poll, followed by J.K Rowling, Michelle Obama, Adele, Jessica Ennis-Hill, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Winslet who all made the top 10. As part of the poll, commissioned by Lil-Lets, 55 per cent said that empowered stars make them feel more confident about their appearance and the things they do. If anyone could make you feel empowered, it’s Helen Mirren. Not only does she have four Emmys, five Baftas, two Golden Globes, a damehood – but she also speaks perfectly about body image and confidence. ‘I’m a woman that loves make-up and getting dressed up. As I get older, I don’t look as good, but I don’t give a damn. There’s a huge pressure on young girls to look a certain way these days but, as I age, I’ve lost that incredible insecurity of youth.’

Dec
23
2014

The Weinstein Company has an early Christmas present for all Helen Mirren fans: The first theatrical trailer for “Woman in Gold”. Helen stars as Maria Altmann, a former Jewish socialite who fled the Nazis during World War II. She left behind her home and her belongings – including a portrait of her aunt by the artist Gustav Klimt. Now, that painting is famous worldwide (and as a poster, adorns countless college dorm rooms), and Maria wants it back. She enlists a lawyer (Ryan Reynolds) to help her fight the Austrian government to restore the portrait to its rightful owner. Not only does Maria want a memento of her favorite aunt, she wants justice for the atrocities committed by the Nazis. “Woman in Gold” also stars Daniel Bruhl, Katie Holmes, Charles Dance, and Elizabeth McGovern, and opens in theaters April 3.

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Dec
11
2014

Congratulations to Helen Mirren for receiving a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical for “The Hundred-Foot Journey”. She shares the category with Amy Adams (Big Eyes), Emily Blunt (Into the Woods), Julianne Moore (Maps to the Stars) and Quvenzhane Wallis (Annie). This is Helen’s 13th Golden Globe nomination. She won three times, for Losing Chase, Elizabeth I. and The Queen. The Golden Globes will be handed out on January 11, 2015.

Oct
22
2014

Empire has a first look at “Eye in the Sky”. With “Ender’s Game” director Gavin Hood and a cast that includes, Helen Mirren, Aaron Paul, Alan Rickman, Barkhad Abdi and Iain Glen busy shooting in South Africa, we’re happy to bring you the first, exclusive imagery from drone drama “Eye In The Sky”. The hot button topical thriller follows the complicated chain of authority that is firmly yanked when a new wrinkle enters a drone mission. The focus is on a few characters involved, including military intelligence officer Colonel Katherine Powell (Mirren), remotely commanding a drone operation to locate terrorists in Nairobi. When the team discovers that their targets are planning a suicide mission, the targets are marked for death instead. Then, just as pilot Steve Watts (Paul) is set to destroy the safe house, he spots a nine-year-old girl entering the kill zone and must pass the request for confirmation of the next step up to the highest levels, including our own foreign secretary (Glen). With production still underway, there’s no solid release date for Eye In The Sky yet, but it should arrive on screens next year.

Jul
26
2014

This Sunday, the Australian edition of 60 Minutes will feature a profile and exclusive interview with Helen Mirren, just in time for the theatrical release of “The Hundred-Foot Journey”. Karl Stefanovic sits down with Dame Helen to talk about her life and movie career – the latter started in Australia with Michael Powell’s “Age of Consent” in 1969. Check back for a transcript of the interview.

Jul
23
2014

Academy and Olivier Award winner Helen Mirren says that she will reprise her performance as Queen Elizabeth II in a Broadway run of Peter Morgan’s The Audience, which played a celebrated, sold-out London run last year, according to the Daily Mail. Mirren stated that rehearsals will get underway in mid-January 2015 with previews to begin in February. A March opening is expected. An official announcement of a Broadway production has not been made. It was previously reported that playwright Morgan was expected to update portions of the script for American audiences. Mirren added that former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair may be among the new characters to appear when The Audience arrives on Broadway. The Audience was previously broadcast in cinemas as part of NT Live.

In The Audience, playwright Morgan imagines a series of pivotal meetings between Her Majesty the Queen and various prime ministers in their weekly meetings, which have hitherto been entirely secret. Stephen Daldry directed the production. Mirren reprised the role of Queen Elizabeth II (for which she won the 2006 Academy Award for Best Actress for “The Queen,” also scripted by Morgan). Her performance in The Audience garnered her the Olivier Award. According to press materials for the London run, “The Audience breaks this contract of silence. From Churchill to Cameron, each Prime Minister has used these private conversations as a sounding board and a confessional – sometimes intimate, sometimes explosive. In turn, the Queen can’t help but reveal her own self as she advises, consoles and, on occasion, teases.”